Skypaw's Game
by Skypaw13
Summary: Once every two seasons (leaffall and newleaf), the Dark Forest chooses names from a pile. Those chosen are sent to the Dark Forest to fight to the death, while the Clans watch. Those chosen are forced to kill strangers and their own Clanmates, as other Clans exist. When Skypaw is chosen, all the publicity given to her unveils a secret that she thought she could keep hidden forever.
1. Chapter 1

Skypaw padded close to her mentor, Jayfeather, her breaths coming in quick, shallow breaths.

"Nervous?" Jayfeather asked.

Too anxious to speak, Skypaw let the silence give her answer.

"Skypaw, they're not going to pick you. Your name is only in the pile once," Jayfeather said.

"I know, but that doesn't keep me from worrying about it," Skypaw replied.

"You'll be fine."

As they walked over the treebridge, Jayfeather wondered which of his Clanmates he would never see or talk to again. At least one had to die. There could only be one victor.

"Jayfeather! What is that!?" Jayfeather heard Skypaw from ahead of him.

"It's probably just the viewing rock, Skypaw. You're fine," he answered her.

"Okay." Skypaw's voice was shaking. Jayfeather knew she was scared, like all of the apprentices. As he took Skypaw over to the medicine cat apprentice section, he could hear her breaths getting even quicker and more shallow. Dangerously shallow.

"Skypaw, listen to me. I have to leave you here, okay? I need to go with the other medicine cats."

"No!" Skypaw meowed. Jayfeather could sense her fear spiking.

"Breathe, Skypaw. Listen, I'll come find you after, okay? I have to go, it's about to start."

"No."

"The first reaping is always scary, Skypaw, but they won't pick you."

"But what if they do?"

"That's highly unlikely."

"Why do you have to go?"

"They keep cats of different ranks seperated, just stay here, okay?"

"But-"

"Skypaw, I'll come get you after. I promise. I need to go with the others."

"Okay."

_Perspective change_

Skypaw watched Jayfeather leave. She couldn't believe she had to stay seperated from cats a different rank from her. Her mentor was the closest thing she had to family. But she knew Jayfeather wouldn't be so kind to her if she weren't a medicine cat and had the same personality as him. She remembered when ThunderClan had taken her in when her parents were killed. Her mother had died by snakebite, her father in a fight with some powerful rouges. She had run away from her home at three moons after a rage had took hold of her. Determined to make it to district five, she reached ThunderClan first. They had taken her in, and Jayfeather became almost like an older brother to her. Many cats told her they even looked related. Skypaw was a light gray tabby with emerald eyes. Jayfeather was the only one who knew these things about her. Skypaw's thoughts were interrupted by Tigerstar.

"Is everyone here and where they're supposed to be? Good, now, as normal, we'll begin with RiverClan." Hawkfrost stepped toward the leaf piles. _He must be the RiverClan escort. I feel bad for RiverClan, _Skypaw thought.

"Our tom from RiverClan will be," Hawkfrost said, snagging a leaf from the pile, "Robinwing." The cats in the RiverClan warriors section stood aside as a tortoiseshell and white tom made his way to the front of the clearing. _He looks confident. _Skypaw watched as Robinwing took his place in the RiverClan tribute section. "And our she-cat is... Minnowtail." The dark gray she-cat walked quickly up to Hawkfrost, then to the RiverClan section. She looked excited. _Isn't RiverClan the Clan with the most winners? It's the seventh games, and they've already won twice. No wonder they look so proud. _Skypaw thought. She saw Redwillow approach the leaves. _ShadowClan, maybe? _

"From ShadowClan, we have Dawnpelt and Dewpaw," Redwillow announced. Skypaw saw that Dawnpelt looked unsure, while Dewpaw looked plain terrified. They took their places in the ShadowClan tribute section, soon joined by Redwillow.

"Now we have WindClan," a voice said. Skypaw turned her head. Breezepelt was walking toward the leaves. "Our WindClan she-cat is... Heathertail." Skypaw turned her head toward the WindClan warriors section. Heathertail's eyes were lighting up with anger and hatred. _I guess she and Breezepelt were lovers, once. She must not be too happy that it was him who called her name. _Heathertail slowly walked up to the WindClan tributes section, snarling at Breezepelt when she passed him. "And our tom is... Nightpaw." A scared looking black tom stood blank with shock as the crowd parted around him. He quietly stepped over to his spot. "That concludes WindClan," Breezepelt finished.

"Now, for ThunderClan," a she-cat's voice sounded. Skypaw recognized her as Mapleshade, a vicious former ThunderClan cat. "Let's see... For the toms we have," Mapleshade trailed off, her paw hovering over the pile. "Firespirit! Come on up!" Skypaw narrowed her eyes. _Firespirit? Hmm..._ she thought. Firespirit walked up, his eyes showing fear above all else. "Good! Now, for the she-cats! Who do we have here?" Mapleshade pulled out a leaf and unfolded it slowly. Or maybe it just seemed slow to Skypaw. _You won't be picked, you won't be picked. Your name's only in once, they're not going to pick you. _Skypaw repeated her mentor's words in her head._ Jayfeather will come and get me after, like he said. It will be someone else. _"And lastly, the ThunderClan she-cat will be...

"Skypaw!"

**Okay, yeah, not a cliffhanger. All of you knew Skypaw would get chosen from the very beginning. This story follows the same basic plot as the Hunger Games, and I am not above reusing their jokes. In fact, the entire story will be a lot like the movie. The only thing I need to warn you about is the technology. Yes, viewing rocks exist. As do knives and pawslings (A slingshot-like weapon).**

**This story was actually rescued from the dead. It was my first fanfiction, and I wrote this two years ago. I am both impressed and disgusted by my writing when I was younger. So, after a ton of editing and revising by present me, the story is back up.**


	2. Chapter 2

Lionblaze watched from a distance as the medicine cat apprentices parted around Skypaw. _She's the first medicine cat apprentice to be called, ever. _ Skypaw looked as though she were about to burst into tears, but she quickly cleared all emotion from her face.

"Where are you? Oh, a medicine cat apprentice! Well, come on up!" Mapleshade exclaimed. Skypaw walked forward, her face totally emotionless. _She must have learned how to do that from Jayfeather, _Lionblaze thought. _She can't be happy or excited to be called up. My brother's apprentice, sentenced to death. _Lionblaze couldn't quite get his head around that. But his feelings were nothing compared to Jayfeather's.

_Perspective Change- Jayfeather_

_ Why was she chosen!? Her name was only in once! How does that even _work_? _Why_ was it her!? _Jayfeather tried to pull himself together, but if he hadn't had years worth of experience of hiding his feelings, he may not have been able to stop himself from rushing up there. Jayfeather normally didn't care for other cats, but Skypaw had become a second sister to him. Hollyleaf often teased him about it, but it was true. Jayfeather heard Skypaw slowly padding up to the front of the clearing. _I can say goodbye later, _he reminded himself. Jayfeather tried to read Skypaw's emotions. The overwhelming sense of fear she had experienced before the reaping had disappeared, leaving only a weak trace behind. But she didn't seem confident, either. It was an emotion Jayfeather couldn't read, one that not even Skypaw herself understood. During the reaping ceremony, Jayfeather had detected all kinds of emotions, ranging from total confidence to complete terror, from the chosen cats. Skypaw's thin fear trace was all she seemed to feel. It was almost as though her mind were shutting itself down in denial.

"Come on up, dearie, we don't have all night," Mapleshade called.

_Let her take her time! _Jayfeather thought angrily. _You would be walking slowly if it were you! _Skypaw's pawsteps sped up slightly. When she reached the front of the clearing, Tigerstar stepped forward.

"I present the lake tributes! Robinwing, Minnowtail, Dawnpelt, Dewpaw, Heathertail, Nightpaw, Firespirit, and Skypaw! Happy Hunger Games! May the best cat win! Now, Clan members, remember, you may watch the Games here at the island or at your camps, but on ceremony nights, all eligible cats watch on the island. If you are a friend or family member of a tribute, you may go say goodbye when Sunstrike opens the dens. Meeting over."

Jayfeather walked over to the dens where they kept the chosen for goodbyes, and waited patiently.

_Perspective Change- Skypaw_

Skypaw was herded by Mapleshade into a small den where they closed the entrance behind her after they told her to wait. She waited a few minutes, then heard a voice behind her.

"You have three minutes," a guard said. Two of them were flanking Jayfeather. The look in his eyes made Skypaw realize that he was annoyed. _He must not like the fact that we have to be guarded, _she thought.

After the guards left, Jayfeather and Skypaw just stood staring at each other before he finally said, "I'm sorry, Skypaw."

"It's not your fault, Jayfeather."

"It almost is. I told you you wouldn't be chosen, and you were."

"Well, unless you rigged the piles yourself, I don't see how it's your fault. You weren't _lying,_ I mean, everybody tells their apprentice that they won't be chosen, and someone always is."

"Aren't you scared, Skypaw?"

Skypaw sighed. "Not as much as I should be."

"You see? That tells me something."

"What?"

"That you're strong. That you can handle overwhelming odds against you."

"Mental strength is no use when facing trained warriors."

Jayfeather sounded exasperated. "Skypaw. It's a huge advantage. Everything starts with your mind. You can't let your fear get to you. And right now, you're not. Keep it up, and you'll walk out of there a victor."

Skypaw looked away, silent. Jayfeather continued.

"Skypaw, you have background knowledge. Not every kit makes a life changing journey."

"I guess not."

"Just focus on what you need to do." Jayfeather's voice softened.

"Our code prohibits killing. But I see where you're coming from. I just don't know if I can do it, when the time comes."

Cats in the Clans no longer stayed in StarClan when they died. They went straight to whatever life comes after StarClan, and their distance from the Clans was greater. Without traveling to some mystic place, such as the Moonpool, the Clans couldn't communicate with them at all. As for the cats in StarClan, they stayed in their sky territory, but their lifespans became just like that of a normal cat. Ever since the Dark Forest came to power, they had even less of an influence over the Clans. _I don't think I could be the one to send someone straight to the afterlife._

Jayfeather leaned closer to her. "You can do it, Skypaw. You're a medicine cat. You know more about herbs and poisons than anyone else in that arena. And you're smart. I know you can get through it."

"Right," Skypaw replied. Jayfeather's words gave her a spark of confidence. A small spark, but still a spark. "Thank you, Jayfeather."

"Goodbye, Skypaw. I know you can do it."

As if they had heard Jayfeather say it, one of the two guards came through the entrance to the den.

"Your time is up," he snarled.

"Okay, I'm coming!" Jayfeather snapped straight back, shaking the guard's tail off his shoulder. "I can walk just fine."

Skypaw watched the two walk out, and caught Jayfeather's encouraging glance back, before they headed out of her sight.


	3. Chapter 3

Skypaw was left in silence for barely a few heartbeats before the bushes rustled again. Mapleshade stalked in, wearing a creepy grin.

_Ivypool told me Mapleshade has changed since the war. Whatever. I still don't trust her._

"It's time to go, dear," she mewed, resting her tail on Skypaw's shoulder. Skypaw shook it off, similar to Jayfeather.

"I can walk," she said quietly.

"Well, that's fantastic." Skypaw thought she heard a hint of sarcasm in Mapleshade's voice. "I thought I'd have to carry you. Let's go."

Skypaw followed Mapleshade out of the den, and saw Firespirit standing near them. Mapleshade beckoned Firespirit with her tail, and he walked behind them over to a transporter with the ThunderClan symbol on it. She'd never been inside one before. The outside was gray, and it looked completely enclosed; no entrance. Firespirit voiced her thought.

"How do we get in?"

"Simple," Mapleshade responded. "Just walk through it."

Skypaw exchanged a glance with Firespirit, and saw her confusion reflected in his eyes.

"Alright then," Skypaw meowed. "Here goes nothing." She stepped in front of the transporter, then without a second thought, leaped into it.

The outer wall felt like ice as her fur made contact with it. She shivered as her body passed through the wall, feeling like cold water was showering over her. But as soon as she got inside, the sensation went away.

Skypaw stood in total shock as she stared around. In one corner, prey was neatly piled up. Every type of animal she'd ever eaten before was there in that pile. Besides that, the ground resembled the ThunderClan forest floor, with leaves covering the ground, except for one area in the middle, which was cleared away to reveal stone underneath. The walls were still there, making the space feel small, but they were green, showing Skypaw that they were making an attempt to recreate the forest, however pitiful that attempt was. In the corner opposite the fresh-kill pile, there was a hole filled with water, and on one of the walls, branches covered an entrance to another section of the transporter.

Skypaw shook her head, and then stepped away from the wall. Firespirit jumped in, closely followed by Mapleshade. Skypaw suppressed a purr of laughter as Firespirit stared around in the same shock that had gripped Skypaw a few seconds prior. _I probably looked like that as well._

"Well, stop standing there and get comfortable," Mapleshade snapped. "We have a lot to talk about."

When Skypaw and Firespirit had found themselves places on the stone in the center, Mapleshade positioned herself across from them. "Any questions?" she asked.

"Yeah, actually," Firespirit responded. "Just how does this thing _work_?

Mapleshade purred in amusement. "It's simply taking us to the Dark Forest in our physical bodies. You can visit in your dreams, but that's technically only your spirit in the forest itself. If we take this way, then we can be sure you're actually there, and you can't get out of the Games by waking up."

"So the Dark Forest is a physical location?" Skypaw wondered.

"Kind of," Mapleshade replied. "You can't get there by walking. You need one of these. It actually momentarily separates your body and spirit when you step in. That's why it feels so strange. But don't worry, once we get to the Dark Forest, you'll be back to normal."

Skypaw glanced to the side and noticed that Firespirit was nodding.

"What do you mean?" she asked. "It doesn't feel strange to me at all."

"Ah, but you're also a medicine cat, are you not?" Mapleshade's creepy grin was back. "Your spirit gets sent to StarClan and beyond twice a moon, so you can probably handle it much better, since you're used to it."

Firespirit sent Skypaw an envious look before turning back to Mapleshade. "So where's our helper?"

"Your what now?"

"The one who gives us advice on how to win."

"Oh! Yes. Lightningtail. She's probably in the other section. Hang on, let me go get her." Mapleshade stood up and walked toward the branches separating the sections. Firespirit and Skypaw were left alone.

"So," Firespirit began.

"Don't even, Firespirit," Skypaw snapped before he got any farther. "I don't want to talk anymore than I have to."

"Alright then, you don't have to say anything," came his annoyed reply. "I was just wondering what Lightningtail will tell us."

Skypaw was silent. Then the rustling of the branches caught her attention. Mapleshade was crawling back out, with a white she-cat close behind her. The she-cat had a dark tail, gray ears, and dark paws.

"Firespirit, Skypaw, this is Lightningtail," Mapleshade mewed. "Lightningtail, these are the chosen ones from ThunderClan."

Lightningtail nodded slowly. "Congratulations," she meowed. Her ice blue eyes were narrowed, and she was smiling, instilling a sense of fear and distrust in Skypaw.

Mapleshade took a drink from the pool, and then returned back to the other section of the transporter. Lightningtail took her place across the stone from Firespirit and Skypaw.

"So what's your plan?" Firespirit asked immediately.

"Now wait a moment," Lightningtail responded. "Most of you aren't in such a hurry."

"Yeah, I want to know what kind of battle plan you've got. You're our helper, right, you're supposed to-"

Lightningtail cut him off. "Helper?" she asked confusedly.

"Yeah!" Firespirit exclaimed. "You're supposed to tell us how to get sponsers, and give us advice! We-" he was cut off by Lightningtail again.

"Well, you definitely live up to your name, don't you? Let's hope you don't burn to death, because then your fiery spirit will be consumed by spirited fire.

"Anyway, I don't know where you're getting the term 'helper' from. That is certainly my job, but I've been here for all seven games, and none of the chosen have ever used that term."

"I heard Firestar use it," Firespirit muttered.

"Well, the first thing either of you need to do is rest up, because you're not going to be doing any resting once we get to the Dark Forest. I will give you information as you need it, so as to not overwhelm you. You two will be sleeping in here," she gestured to the transporter room with her tail. "Mapleshade's bringing moss now."

Lightningtail smiled at Firespirit. "Will that hold you for now?"

"I guess," he murmured.

Lightningtail turned her head toward Skypaw. "What about you, little one? You haven't said a word."

"I'm not little," Skypaw replied instantly.

"Well, you might want to act like you are. You're a medicine cat apprentice, no? That puts you at both an advantage and disadvantage, friend."

"So I've heard," Skypaw mumbled.

"A quick question," Firespirit mewed. "What exactly are the rules concerning medicine cats entering the Games?"

"It's complicated," Lightningtail answered simply, looking toward the wall.

"I want to know, too," Skypaw added.

"Oh, well. If a medicine cat has fully trained an apprentice, both become eliglible for the Games. If there's only one medicine cat, they are not able to enter. If there's two but one is only an apprentice, only the apprentice is eliglible." She looked back toward Skypaw and Firespirit. "It's mainly to prevent a medicine cat from dying before passing on their knowledge, and leaving the Clan without a healer."

"There's also special rules concerning the reaping of a medicine cat apprentice," Skypaw cut in.

"True," Lightningtail responded. "For warrior apprentices, their name is in once if they're in the first half of training, and twice if they're in the second half. A medicine cat's name is only in once."

"Making it even more unlikely that Skypaw would be chosen," Firespirit finished.

"Firespirit, can you just shut up? Please?"

Skypaw was relieved to hear his answer; silence.

"Well, I'm going to sleep," Lightningtail mewed as she stood up. Mapleshade was crawling underneath the branches back into Firespirit's and Skypaw's part of the transporter, carrying a large wad of moss. Enough for two nests. She dropped it off and returned to her own section. Lightningtail turned to follow her, but spun back around.

"Oh! Nearly forgot!" She walked over to one of the walls. "It can feel really cramped in here, so you can open this up. Just don't jump out." She tapped the wall twice with her paw. It appeared to dissolve, giving them a veiw of the outside. The scenery was rushing past at such a high speed, Skypaw was surprised she wasn't feeling sick. Lightningtail did the same thing with the wall across from the first. Then she turned tail and went to her own section with only an amiable, "Goodnight!"

"What happens if we jump out?" Firespirit asked.

"When it's moving? You doom yourself to wander the planet alone forever, not being able to talk to anyone, or being able to die," Skypaw replied.

"Really?" Firespirit sounded shocked and afraid.

"No, mouse-brain. That will happen, but they'll just come back for you. You'll delay the Games if you jump, and that'll make everyone upset. Well, everyone in the Dark Forest, anyway."

Skypaw padded past him and began making a nest for herself near the now open wall. _No wind or anything._ Now that she was close, she noticed a sparkling dust covering the wall. _So it's not open, it's just see-through._ She finished making her nest, and lay down, listening to Firespirit do the same. _I still can't believe it. Me, Skypaw, going to the Hunger Games. Do I really have a chance? With no battle training and only a bit of herb knowledge?_

_ You're smart. I know you can get through._ Jayfeather's words echoed in her mind. She repeated them, listening to his words of encouragement until she finally fell asleep.

**There was a reference to TWEWY in here. Can you find it? Do any of you know what TWEWY is? Am I just typing random questions on a screen? Actually, there was also a reference to Final Fantasy IX in this chapter. And a reference to Pokémon Diamond in the first chapter, and there's a reference to Kingdom Hearts somewhere in this story, but I forgot what it was.**

**... I think I may play too many video games.**

**I don't usually like leaving author's notes, but I need to address something, and I just figured I'd ramble a bit about video games before getting to the point. The point is the summary of this story. Do I get an award for having all except one word being grammatically correct, and taking up _exactly_ 384 characters (the limit for summaries)? I understand that leaf-fall and leaf-bare are not unhyphenated (sorry for the confusing double negative. They _are hyphenated_) when I made them so in the summary. Like I said, my summary was exactly 384 characters, and it wouldn't let me put in one measly little dash. So keep an eye out for the next update, and if you're here, you should totally review. I'm sorry, did you think you stumbled across an author who doesn't ask the readers to review all the time? Well, I don't ask all the time, 'cause that gets annoying for both me and you. But since I'm typing out an author's note, I figured I'd say it. You don't know how much it means to us. Or maybe you're a fanfiction author yourself and you do know. The point is, review if you can.**

**tl;dr: I play too many video games, I get that there's a mistake with the hyphen in the summary, and you should totally review.**


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